Landrieu gets to work swinging that Energy Committee gavel

posted at 6:01 pm on March 29, 2014 by Erika Johnsen

Louisiana is second only to Texas in both natural-gas production and refining capacity, with the Haynesville and Fayetteville shale gas plays contributing largely to the state’s economy that also serves as the hub of a nexus of a whole bunch of pipelines. In a nutshell, energy is pretty dang important in the Gulf state, and super-vulnerable Senate Democrat Mary Landrieu has been gunning for the gavel of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the better to heighten her pro-oil and gas profile ahead of her reelection campaign. With both Big Oil’s donation dollars and her red state’s voters on the line, she wasted no time getting to work this week, via the WSJ:

“One of the reasons I’m running again is to chair this committee, because I’ve—by God’s grace—lasted long enough to do it,” Ms. Landrieu, the new head of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources panel, told a crowd of more than 300 assembled in Lake Charles for the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association’s annual meeting. …

Ms. Landrieu’s challenge, party strategists say, will be to wield the gavel in a way that shows she can help Louisiana and its energy industry while distancing herself from her party, which is viewed negatively by many of the independent and Republican voters Ms. Landrieu must win to keep her seat. …

For her committee’s first hearing, this past week, Ms. Landrieu focused on expanding natural-gas exports, now a top geopolitical issue in light of the Ukraine crisis. Three proposed export projects that the Obama administration has conditionally approved, and the only one with final approval, are located in Louisiana.

Which is all something of a conundrum for the Obama administration. No way are Landrieu and the handful of her fellow red-state, pro-energy, and electorally vulnerable colleagues (Pryor, Begich, Udall) going to come out swinging in favor of any of the even milquetoast climate-change regulations and executive actions, never mind legislation, with which the Obama administration is trying to prove their worth to well-monied and well-organized cadre of eco-radical Democratic donors that give progressive campaigns so much cash. These vulnerable Democrats could definitely use the help from the administration approving more natural-gas exports approvals and an OK on the Keystone XL pipeline, but they can’t come off as too antagonistic toward the green lobby, either. Such a dilemma. Via the National Journal:

But that hasn’t convinced the environmental lobby’s heavy hitters to cut checks for Landrieu. In the past year, only one environmental organization has donated to her campaign. The Baton Rouge-based Center for Coastal Conservation gave Landrieu a $2,500 nod, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Environmental Defense Fund have handed over a combined contribution of exactly nothing. …

“Landrieu puts the environmental community in a difficult situation,” Schreiber said. “She’s been awful on climate change and she’s quite responsive to the oil and gas industry. And she’s chair of the Energy Committee. That makes things complicated.” …

The oil and gas industry is the second-largest contributor to Landrieu’s campaign committee and leadership PAC combined. The industry has also done more to give the senator a boost than her Republican challenger. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Landrieu’s campaign has so far raised close to $9.5 million with a cool $564,350 coming from the oil and gas industry.

Not that Landrieu necessarily wants the greens’ money — I doubt having the Sierra Club on the list of her major campaign donors would help her cultivate the image she’s going for — but this makes the Obama administration’s Keystone XL pipeline decision (or lack thereof) all the more pivotal in the coming months.

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Human Achievement Hour 2014Saturday, March 29, 2014
8:30 pm – 9:30 pm

On March 29, some people will be sitting in the dark to express their “vote” for action on global climate change.
Instead, you can join CEI and the thousands of people around the world who will be celebrating Human Achievement Hour (HAH).Leave your lights on to express your appreciation for the inventions and innovations that make today the best time to be alive and the recognition that future solutions require individual freedom not government coercion. http://cei.org/hah

I don’t care who they are, Democrats simply can’t be trusted on the energy issue. As soon as she’s reelected, if that were to happen, she would swing back to being an Obama voter secure in the knowledge that she’s secure for six long years.

The safest course is to replace get, and all Red state Dems, with a Republican.

“One of the reasons I’m running again is to chair this committee, because I’ve—by God’s grace—lasted long enough to do it,”

Oh! please sweetie. You’re a Landrieu. Running for public office is what your worthless family does. God forbid you actually ever hold a real job- you know- one of those that actually doesn’t involve being paid by the government.

And even if you hold on after the 2014 elections, I’m pretty certain that the GOP will not let you keep that gavel. Enjoy the job while you’ve got it honey.

Probably the crowning achievement of Mary Landrieu was the Louisiana Purchase where her vote for zerocare was literally purchased for 300 mill which later became two billion. What a load! She need to go.

Are voters so short of memory as to vote for her?
Talk to the voters in AZ.
Remember McShame….vote for me, I’ll close those borders.
Right.
Nasty power hungry politicians will say anything to get elected.

On March 29, some people will be sitting in the dark to express their “vote” for action on global climate change.
Instead, you can join CEI and the thousands of people around the world who will be celebrating Human Achievement Hour (HAH).
Leave your lights on to express your appreciation for the inventions and innovations that make today the best time to be alive and the recognition that future solutions require individual freedom not government coercion.http://cei.org/hah

Don’t cry for Landrieu. The greenies will make sure she gets the money she needs, only through cut-outs and conduits to mask the true source.

They understand that vulnerable Democrats may have to sound reasonable to the home folks at election time, but if they succeed they will be back the Democratic pack of yes-men for another five years, right up to the next cycle heats up. The question is are the voters still dumb enough to buy it again? Or, are they mad enough about ObamaCare and the economy that the deception just won’t help?

How can anyone still fall for the same dishonest Democrat game of, play sane in the months leading up to an election, then be an automatic vote for radical left wing economy destroying policy for the next 5 years and 6 months?

It happens every election cycle.

You know, now that i think about it. Lindsay Graham and Mitch McConnell are trying to do the same thing.